


dear aunt mito!

by syn0dic



Category: Hunter X Hunter
Genre: Gen, also some mild violence, cw for implied child abuse, cw for implied grooming, in which aunt mito beats the crud out of palm siberia, short epistolary writing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:21:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25793551
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/syn0dic/pseuds/syn0dic
Summary: It's simple. Aunt Mito will not take any bullshit, from anyone who would hurt her nephew. Or, in which Mito is a better parent than Gon's actual parent (which is, I suppose, canon compliant).
Comments: 4
Kudos: 40





	dear aunt mito!

Mito stood on the prow of the ship as it sailed into the port at Peijing.

It was a pretty enough city, she thought. Mito had only left Whale Tail Island a few times, but every time she had been delighted. It wasn’t like boarding a chartered ship was expensive-- but between her grandmother and Gon, she hadn’t had time to travel in a long time. But this had required a more immediate response than just writing a letter or waiting for a phone call could really provide, and that aside, her ire had been provoked, and although Mito’s fuse was long (for god’s sake, she’d taken in her cousin’s son), this was something she could not stand. In her hand, Mito held a letter, the sea breeze rustling the paper.

_Dear Miss Mito,_

_This is Killua. I guess you probably remember me. I don’t usually write letters, but neither does Gon, so I thought I had better write to you. We’re not really in any trouble right now. We’re in Peijing, in the Mitene Union, and soon, we might be going to the NGL. I will write you again before we leave if we do end up going to the NGL._

_I’m mostly writing this letter because I’m worried about Gon. Yesterday he agreed to go on a date with a woman who is far older than us. He told me it was normal for him, but that doesn’t sound right to me. I just have a bad feeling about it. I wanted to know if you could just let me know whether or not it’s alright. He’s my friend but you’re his aunt and you probably know better than me. You can write me back here._

_Killua_

Seagulls called above her, and a bell rung as the ship came into port. A very polite young man offered to take her single bag of luggage, and she declined politely. There was the address on the letter, she thought, scanning it again. That Killua boy, she thought, had such messy handwriting. Whoever taught him to write had clearly not taken off points for untidy work. The thought, however, of either of them sitting in a classroom anymore, almost made her laugh. The two little boys who had spent a weekend up in the woods a few months ago wouldn’t be able to sit still in a classroom for even a few minutes, let alone all day, every week. She was almost sure Killua had never been in a school before in his life. That didn’t make him any less sharp though, she thought as she walked down the street. If Killua had enough sense to write her about this _woman_ , then there was no way that he was as naive and sheltered as that would otherwise have implied.

When Mito knocked on the door to the room number on Killua’s letter, a young blond girl answered. She had vivid fuschia eyes, and an ensemble that would have looked right at home on a porcelain doll-- but something in her eyes looked older. But she barely had the chance to open her mouth, before Gon had run to her.

“Aunt Mito!” he shouted, that ever-sunny smile on his face that made her grin without fail every time. He threw his arms around her and Mito hugged him back. He really was so young, she thought, just a kid. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, I came here because I was worried about you all!” Mito laughed. “You two look like you’ve been training. Am I getting in your way?”

Killua walked up beside the blond woman, who Mito had discerned was not the woman in question, and shook his head, hands in his pockets. “Nah,” he said.

“So you’re Gon’s aunt?” said the woman, offering out her hand. “I’m Bisky. I’ve been teaching these two.”

“My, I guess I probably owe you quite a bit, then,” said Mito. “I just came to pay a visit. It’s been quiet at home without you, Gon,” she said, ruffling his hair, “and I always meant to travel.”

The look in Killua’s eyes told Mito, he knew why she was here.

From the kitchen of the apartment, a loud clatter interrupted the conversation, and Mito caught Killua’s eyes as they flashed. This was her.

A woman with long, dark tangled hair and sickly skin dragged herself out of the kitchen.

“Gon,” she said, “when are we leaving for--”

“Palm!” Gon smiled, clearly trying to placate her. “We can leave tomorrow, after I’m done training with Killua. Don’t worry! We’re still on. And I’m sure you’ll look very pretty!”

Mito’s eyes narrowed in ice cold, unhesitant, unrepentant rage. She snatched the woman by a long lock of knotted hair and yanked it, pulling the woman to the floor, and landed a firm kick to her gut before she even had a chance to respond.

Killua put up an arm to hold Bisky and Gon back-- and it didn’t look to Mito like Bisky had much interest in stopping her, anyways. Dragging the woman, Palm, was it-- by the hair across the floor while she shrieked, Mito cracked her knuckles and landed a solid punch to Palm’s cheek, jerking her upright by her hair. She was light for her height, thought Mito. Not much trickier than it was to help carry her grandmother, actually. She landed another solid kick to Palm’s shoulder as the woman skittered like a spider trying to right herself. Mito yanked at her hair again, still solidly in one hand, and for a solid five minutes, Mito was allowed unbridled, unrestrained violence upon the spidery thing. Bruises and what should have been breaks, had Mito not suspected she was using some sort of defense, covered the woman, and a gash on her leg was starting to bleed.

Panting, she stood up, hands beginning to ache from exertion and shoes splattered with blood from her outburst. The woman stood-- a nen user, probably, though Mito didn’t know why she wouldn’t defend herself, if she was, and left.

“Stay away from my nephew!” Mito called as she left, her anger still alight. But it melted away as she saw the confused, lost look on Gon’s face.

“Boys,” said Mito, her voice returning to its pleasant, maternal intonation as she gasped for breath, “I need you all to sit down. And Bisky, maybe you too.”

“I’m fifty seven,” said Bisky, sitting down in one of the loungers and reaching for a glass of soda. “I’m older than you, so I don’t think there’s much you could say to me.”

“I see,” said Aunt Mito, who was increasingly confounded by the company her nephew chose to keep. “Gon,” she said, sitting cross legged on the floor, “can you sit with me?”

He nodded, but hesitated, tapping his chin with his pointer finger. “Aunt Mito, why did you hurt Palm? She didn’t even fight back or do anything wrong.”

“She did a lot of things wrong, Gon,” said Mito in a stern voice. “I probably did too, though, in retrospect. I should have talked to you about this a long time ago.” She sighed. “Gon, it isn’t okay for grown ups to go on dates with you or to try to be interested in you. It’s wrong.”

“But all those times on Whale Island…” Gon paused. “I was just having fun with the nice women, and…”

“Gon, it wasn’t right. And I didn’t know about it for a long time. You’re too young for these sorts of things, and I should have talked to you about it back then instead of just telling you not to visit with them anymore. That’s my fault.” She sighed. “But you also have to be mindful that these are people who will hurt you if they can.”

“Palm wouldn’t hurt me,” said Gon hesitantly. “I mean, she has knives, but I don’t think she’d use them against me.”

“I don’t mean that sort of hurt,” said Mito, who almost would have smiled. “You’re too trusting. She would hurt your heart and your mind, and that’s just as wrong. Adults like that might hurt you in other ways, too.”

“Oh,” said Gon, nodding in thought that Mito was sure was probably misdirected, the wheels in his head turning, but she hoped the sentiment came across. The thought of that woman on a date with her beloved nephew, the little boy she’d raised-- it made her sick. “But… people like Kite and Bisky are okay, right?”

“Kite?” Mito tilted her head.

“He’s an apprentice of Ging’s! He saved me and Killua a lot of times, and he has a research team that studies wildlife. He’s amazing! He’s the one who saved me from the foxbear when I was little. Come to think of it, Aunt Mito, you remind me a little of the foxbear,” Gon enthused with a bright smile, but she detected some hesitancy in Killua.

“Killua?” she asked. “Is something wrong with Kite?”

“Well, he’s fine,” said Killua, “and I don’t think he’d hurt us. But the last time we saw him he was in a lot of danger trying to save us.”

“Ah,” said Aunt Mito, who was beginning to understand that this was a far more perilous situation than she’d assessed from Killua’s very brief letter. “Then I’m sure Kite is alright. And Bisky seems like a good teacher. But both of you-- and I mean both of you,” she said, glancing at Killua, “you can tell me if adults ever try to hurt you like Palm would have. Or in any way.” She sighed. “And Killua, thank you for writing to me. It’s nice to get letters from you boys! I worry so much about you.”

“You don’t have to worry about us,” said Gon. “We’ve become really strong. Even against all sorts of enemies! We even beat Greed Island!”

“Clearly I do need to worry about you,” said Aunt Mito with a sigh. “You’re so strong, and you’ve grown up a lot, but that doesn’t mean you can always understand when you’re in danger or when people want to hurt you outside of just fights.”

“But…” Gon hesitated. “Palm’s an ally in battle. Her mentor left her to watch over us.”

“I understand that,” said Mito. “And I’m sure there’s more to the situation that I don’t understand. But keep your distance from her. Don’t go on that date, alright? And if an adult asks you out or is interested in you, I want you to call me right away, or Bisky or another adult you trust. Maybe even Kite.”

Gon nodded. “I promise.”

Mito sighed. “You too, Killua. I know you probably noticed,” she said, “but even so, adults shouldn’t make you feel unsafe.”

Killua nodded. “Yeah,” he said, slouched and visibly distant from the conversation, though she could tell he was keenly listening. It was one of those superpowers that came with being an aunt, she supposed, to read her nephew and his friends so easily.

“You might want to get out soon, though,” said Bisky. “Palm is not exactly a merciful person. Mito, I know you just got here, but I would leave tonight before she comes back.”

“Oh,” said Mito, “you know, sometimes I forget! I spend so much time around, well, normal people. You hunters are all very different.” She smiled. “I hate to have come all this way just for a visit.” She rose to her feet. “Bisky, can you take care of Gon and Killua?”

“I’ll do my best,” she said with a smile, and though Mito wasn’t too reassured by the woman, she could recognize a sharp teacher when she saw one, and for now, that would have to do.

“I have to go,” she said, hugging Gon, and ruffling his hair. “Write to me now and then, alright?”

“I will!” said Gon.

“Mito?” said Killua, standing back a short ways. “Thank you.”

Mito beamed. “Of course. Be safe, you two.”

She closed the door behind her, gone as quickly as she’d arrived, and Killua sighed at the door, while he could tell Gon was plainly still thinking.

“What’s on your mind?” said Killua, slumping against the wall.

“Maybe we should have told her about Hisoka, too,” he said pensively.


End file.
